Huawei Mate 40 Pro Plus image reveals the sheer scale of its camera housing as retail box leaks

There is no denying that Huawei pushes boundaries in smartphone design, whether that be the Mate X and Mate Xs or the waterfall screen of the Mate 30 Pro. The company is also one of the great smartphone innovators, especially in terms of camera hardware, as anyone with a P20 Pro or a P30 Pro would probably attest. However, the combination of the two does not necessarily guarantee aesthetically-pleasing of results, such as the huge pill-shaped cutout on the P40 Pro.

However, that design decision pales in comparison to the one that Huawei has made with the Mate 40 Pro Plus. The company's first teasers pointed to a large rear-facing camera housing, but a new image posted by DuanRui appears to show the scale of it in real terms. The image has been posted to Weibo, and it is unclear whether it is a fan render or the real deal. 

However, there must have been a more understated way of arranging a multi-camera set-up than what resembles a shield. The housing takes up about a third of the width of the back panel, dwarfing the large camera housing of the Mate 30 Pro.

The retail packaging of the Mate 40 Pro Plus has also leaked. The images, which we have included below, seemingly confirm that Huawei will offer the device with 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage. The model number NOP-AN00 corresponds with a recent TENAA listing, for reference. Huawei will announce the Mate 40 series on October 22.